


The Way You See Me

by DannyXV



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Fantasy Violence, Foot in mouth syndrome, I'm Serious, Like, Misunderstandings, Mutual Pining, My Hero Academia AU, Naughty Language ;), Naughty language, Poorly Hidden Thirst, they're so bad at hiding it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-31
Updated: 2019-07-31
Packaged: 2020-07-27 20:35:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20052163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DannyXV/pseuds/DannyXV
Summary: Written for the Plance Big BangArt by Tumblr user Multi-Parker at multi-parker.tumblr.comBeta'd by yellowmechanicalcat	at yellowmechanicalcat.tumblr.com





	The Way You See Me

In all of Lance’s years as a professional hero, never once had he encountered anyone as absolutely infuriating as Keith Kogane. Perhaps a non-insignificant part of it had to do with the fact that his dog got a provisional licence before Lance had even gotten his real one, but that's besides the point.

“You really think you can beat my skills mullet-head? I could out-shoot you any day of the week.” Lance and Keith were standing face to face in the middle of a heated shouting match in a small furnished waiting room while Pidge and Hunk, two fellow heroes who worked in support, sipped lemonade and watched disinterestedly. It was difficult to care when the grandstanding, the bragging, and the talking of all that good shit never really amounted to much more than what it was. Talk.

“You say that, but what makes you think you’ll even be able to keep up with my speed?” Keith jabbed a finger into the taller hero’s chest, emphasizing his point. “I’ll take you down before you can even make a shot.” Lance’s brow furrowed as he sucked in breath.

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah!”

“Oh yeah?” 

“Yeah!”

“Oh yeah?” 

“Yeah!”

Hunk’s exasperated groan broke the two out of their self-sustaining circle jerk long enough for the hefty mechanic to get a word in edgewise. “Are you guys gonna actually back up your crap? I mean c’mon! We’ve been through this same song and dance at least four times already!”

Lance scoffed. There’s no way that he’d be as predictable as-

And his thought was immediately interrupted by the sound of Pidge’s phone playing a recording of Lance and Keith standing face to face, having the same fucking argument. 

_ “Oh Yeah?” _

_ “Yeah!” _

_ “Oh yeah?” _

_ “Yeah!” _

_ “Oh yeah?” _

_ “Ye- _

Pidge shut off the recording and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Look guys, I love your rivalry and all that. It was great for the hype for this charity event, but could we seriously skip it today?” She cards her fingers through her hair before smiling as if she’d gotten an idea. “We all know that neither of you are willing to actually put money where your mouths are.”

The room was precariously perched on a pause for a tough beat while Lance balked at the accusation. Hunk and Keith seemed to catch on to what was going on only a moment too late.

“Oh yeah, well then how about this! Keith, I challenge you to a motherfucking duel!” Lance said as he struck one of his trademark ExtraTM anime poses with his thumb and index finger outlining his chin. “Whoever wins the most events gets the glory of being the Ultimate Loverboy Hotshot Hearthrob!”

Keith groaned, but there was something light and playful about it this time. “If we’re gonna do this, it’s gonna be for something better than the title you probably stitched into your underwear. It’s gonna be...” Keith’s eyes lit up with a truly mischievous energy. “It’s gonna be for something you care about.”

Keith took a moment to allow the dramatic tension build (Something he’d picked up after years of a ridiculous rivalry with the world’s most dramatic hero) before simply saying, “If I win, then the next time you go out on a date- 

Pidge cut in with a snort, “Whenever the hell that happens.”

”-You’re gonna have to wear something stupid and humiliating. I’d say go out and dress like yourself, but we’re gonna turn this up to 11 instead of the usual 9. We need something that really shows how much of a weenie you are. You’ve gotta dress up in a hot-dog mascot costume.”

Lance glowered at Keith for a second before he flashed his patented winning smirk. “I’m not really worried, since that’s only if I don’t win. When I do, then you have to… Give Kosmo a full on Spa Day.” 

The gasp that slipped from Hunk’s mouth betrayed how sinister Lance’s dare truly was. It was common knowledge that the cosmic wolf absolutely hated water, and hated baths even more. This wouldn’t be much of a problem if the wolf didn’t have one of the world’s most coveted quirks, the ability to teleport. The last time anyone had attempted to give Kosmo a bath, it had resulted in an accidental jailbreak and about $3 Million of property damages.

Keith mirrored Lance’s look of confidence and stuck out his hand to shake. “You’re on ‘Hotshot’.”

Their hands clasped as just as Shiro enters. “I’m glad you two are getting along now, but I need you two out there. Is your gear ready?” The muscular hero glanced at the display built into his prosthetic arm. “We’ve got another minute before the Pre-show ends.”

Hunk held up a utility holster that had been sitting on his lap for Keith to take as he passed. “We should be good. I switched out your blades for blunted ones just for the sake of… you know, and the sword-port mechanism seems to be working well enough. Give it a try or two before you get out there just in case.”

Keith gave Hunk a warm smile as he donned his equipment. “It’ll be fine.” He shot a pointed look back towards where Lance was still glowering, “I probably won’t even need it to deal with this chump.”

“Ooh, sick burn. Are you just gonna let him say that to you?” Lance whipped his head to look indignantly at Pidge who was casually laying back on the couch, fiddling with a blue and white compact device while she hung upside down off the edge. 

Lance over-reacted with the same mock anguish he was famous for. “Really Pidge? My own support technician conspiring against me? I’m devastated. You know how sensitive I am!” He gave a brief fake sob as he covered his face with his hands.

“Yeah whatever, here’s your shit, don’t break it.” Pidge closed a small hatch on the wide face of the device before tossing it through the air towards where Lance was standing, clearly not paying enough attention to the point where he nearly dropped it before it hit the ground. Gingerly, he cradled the object to his chest before glaring at his so-called support tech.

“Pidge! The fuck? I kinda need this thing! Don’t handle it so rough!”

“Yeah Pidge, stop handling his tool so roughly. It’s the only one he’s got.” Hunk and Keith shared a hearty laugh as they strolled out of the waiting room towards the stage. Shiro glanced worriedly towards the two increasingly flustered heroes who were making a profound effort to not be looking at each other right at that moment. Despite this, it was clear that they were both gauging the other’s reaction out of the corner of their eyes.

“Remember you two, this is a charity event. Regardless of your… rivalry with Keith, try to keep things relatively PG? There are children watching this thing you know.”

Lance took a moment to respond, seemingly out of words to say at that moment. “Sure thing Shiro…” As the older man left the two to exit at their own pace, Pidge slowly pulled herself into an upright position.

The awkward silence hung over the duo while a roaring crowd could be heard in the background. Pidge eventually elected to break the silence. “We should… get going.”

“Yeah…” Lance cleared his throat as he held out a hand to help her up, trying not to notice how her shirt had started to ride up from her previous sitting position. In an effort to stop thinking about her well toned stomach and how it made him feel, Lance tried to change the subject to something else. “Did you get my message before? About that update I wanted for the prototype?”

Pidge stared at Lance’s hand floating out in front of her like it was no big deal. Was it a big deal? Does it matter? Did Lance just say something? “Probably… Oh, you mean the- yeah that, sure. Of course. That’s what we are talking about. The prototype.” Pidge hurriedly pulled herself to her feet using Lance’s toned forearms in a misguided attempt to avoid intimate contact with the frustratingly sexy object of her affections. Hoping to avoid facing him with her increasingly red face, she power walked to the door and started talking to him over her shoulder. “I think I found a way to get the-uh the shaping mechanism to hold the integrity without any undue stress on your end, but you won’t be able to maintain control at a long distance. I wasn’t able to get it all working on this model, but the scope has a thermal attachment that I was able to get working.” 

As dense as Lance had a penchant for being, even he could tell something was off with Pidge by the way she rocketed away, but with the sight before him, he was having enough trouble not pitching a full tent to focus much on the subtext of her actions. Despite her small stature, from behind she was… well shaped to say the least, and he had to awkwardly jog to catch up with her so that her tantalizing features wouldn’t be right in his face. Lance awkwardly cleared his throat after a failed attempt to get something-anything to come out of his mouth that wasn’t a childish squeak.

“Really? That’s awesome! This is going to really boost my close-combat skills!” By this point Lance had caught up with Pidge, and he playfully jabbed her in the shoulder, using his high energy to mask the deep embarrassment he felt at the knowledge that he’d just been eyeing up his close friend. “You’re the best Katie!”

There was something about the look Pidge would get in her eyes whenever he called her by her real name that made Lance’s heart warm. Despite how they acted together, she was immeasurably precious to him, and a part of him wanted to tell her how much she meant to him. That very thought terrified him, and rightfully so. How do you nonchalauntly tell your best friend that you want to hold them close and never let go? How were you supposed to tell them that the way they looked at you when they didn’t think you were looking gave you the strength to face down even the strongest villains? The very idea of telling Pidge how he felt filled him with so much fear, and yet looking at her with her cheeks red and an unspoken warmth behind her eyes filled his heart with hope beyond measure.

In this moment, Lance resolved to share his feelings when he walked off the field victorious.

Pidge would never get used to the way Lance said her name like that. When he called her Katie, it was as if she was the one holding the sun in the sky. His touch burned under her skin and lit her nerves on fire. It was an addicting feeling, but she couldn’t let herself entertain any frivolous fantasies. Not here. “I- Tell me something I don’t know Lance. I’ll let you get to your dick-measuring contest now. Try not to get thrashed too hard.” She waved him off dismissively, looking away to hide her rapidly growing blush. 

By this point, they had both reached the opening to the stadium where Hunk was leaning against the wall waiting for them. “Break a leg dude. You’re gonna need the luck.”

“As if I’m ever anything but lucky. You guys should rush to your seats, because this is gonna be over in a flash!” If you could say nothing else of him, it would be impossible to count out Lance’s bottomless self-confidence when it came to his skills with a rifle. In Pidge’s mind, whenever he took to the field, it was like watching a bird take flight, so sure of his own abilities to the point where defeat isn’t even on his radar. From the limited information she had about Keith and his abilities, it seemed that he was the same way. 

It was at this point that Pidge realized that she was subconsciously tracking the motion of Lance’s lithe frame across the field, paying more attention to the ass than was necessarily due. Or maybe she wasn’t giving it enough attention… No! There was no time to contemplate the not quite juicy, yet deliciously firm derriere of her close friend. She had to go find her seat. There would be time for thirst later. 

She and Hunk walked silently through the labyrinth of hallways leading up to the commentator box where Radio Hero Coran would be waiting. It was a nice silence, not at all plagued with an awkward subtext.

“So… Lance, huh? I gotta say, you could’ve chosen a lot worse.”

Shit. Shit Shit Fuck Shit Damn. 

“I’ve got no clue what you’re talking about. Why would I- with Lance- and you-” Hunk cut her off with a laugh and a shake of his head.

“Dude, I’ve known the two of you for years. Do you really think I wouldn’t recognize your thirst face? You’ve got it bad.” Instead of glorifying his taunts with a response, she just increased her speed until she was several paces ahead of him. Because of the sound of her heart pounding in her ears and her heavy footsteps echoing through the halls, she almost didn’t hear what Hunk jokingly said next.

“It’s just a shame that Lance’s gonna have to wear a hot-dog suit. At least you can still peep those buns though.”

* * *

From the center of the arena, the cheering of the crowd was almost overwhelming. Lance eagerly drank in the adulation and jeers from the thousands of spectators with an eager wave and several of his World FamousTM finger-guns while Keith stood awkwardly in his patented Brooding Stance. Something irritated Lance about the way Keith always got so much love without having to put in any effort at all, but he figured that that’s just the way things went with the Loner types. 

Shiro’s voice penetrated the noise with a level of gravitas that can only come with being the number one hero in the nation. “Welcome everyone to the 2120 Annual Charity Spectacular! Thanks to your donations and tickets, we’ve managed to raise over three-million Dollars to end poverty!” 

The older man cleared his throat and gestured towards the two heroes standing behind him. “And now, to kick of the event, and for reaching that milestone, we will now have a bit of a friendly competition between these two fine heroes!”

With that statement, the crowd once again went wild, requiring Shiro to speak up to get the next point across. “As you all know, Yorak and Slipshot here both have their own specialties, so it’s only fair that their competition caters to each of their strong points, right?” With the crowd’s affirmative cheer he continued.

“To start off with, we’ll have a small round of target practice. Normal right? Well these targets aren’t going to sit still!” With a flourish of his wrist, a hatch in the base of the stage swung open and a swarm of softball-sized robots flew out with red targets painted on the side. As the robots spread out over the arena, Shiro explains over the droning noise.

“There’re 91 bots here, each equipped with sensors that recognize the person that breaks it! The name of the game here is quantity and speed! Whoever breaks the most robots first wins!” With the swarm sufficiently spread out, Shiro raised a hand, and the two young heroes entered a ready stance. 

“Ready?” The tension was high as Shiro stepped back from the battle-zone slowly, only the sound of buzzing bots filled the air. The second he reached the edge of the arena, Shiro thrust his hand down and jumped back and up into the air towards the commentator box.

“Begin!” With that, Lance whipped out his rifle and began firing rapidly into the swarm, with each shot a bolt of water rocketing from the nozzle with needle-like precision. Keith on the other hand dropped into a feral stance before leaping into the air, twisting and arcing as he threw his daggers left and right, drawing them back with a small wire as soon as they made contact. Over the next thirty seconds, Lance didn’t take a single step, he just looked down the scope and fired, and whipping around to find a new target, dispatching at least one robot with every shot. Ultimately, all of the robots were reduced to a blanket of scrap littering the floor of the arena.

* * *

From the spectator box, Pidge’s view of the arena was slightly obscured by the cloud of robots she had built with Hunk for the occasion. Not one to be deterred from her ultimate goal though, she had her tablet open to a live feed from the one of the grounded robots that had a particularly good view of the action… or rather, the_ Action _. 

It was rare that she had the chance to see Lance with such singular focus and determination, and if she was being honest with herself…. Who was she kidding, it totally ticked off all of her boxes. Even as he twirled through a maelstrom of raining scrap metal, there was a beautiful grace to Lance’s movements. There wasn’t a single extraneous movement in his dance, only precision.

“You really aren’t even trying to hide it anymore are you?” Hunk’s voice caught her by surprise from over her shoulder, but she couldn’t really be bothered enough to look away from her screen.

“Uh, I’m- It’s…” Pidge’s eyes darted across the screen for a plausible excuse that wasn’t Lance’s marvelously toned arms, or his sculpted ass, or the way his fingers danced across his weapon with a nimple precision that made her thighs- “I’m making sure my maintenance wasn’t for nothing! That’s it, that’s what I’m doing.” 

Her less than compelling performance and the fact that her face was still beet red did little to help her case, but it’s not like Hunk was the type of person to buy her bullshit in the first place.

“Just admit it girl, you’ve got it bad for the guy! Even Keith can tell! As far as I know, Lance himself is the only one that doesn't, but that’s hardly a surprise, knowing him. Dude wouldn’t know a crush if it bit him in the-”

“I get it Hunk! Geez, fine, I admit it.” Pidge glanced down at the tablet where the robots had all been defeated as the competition moved into its next round. “Lance has a number of… attractive qualities. He’s dedicated, passionate, and a genuinely good person that I like being around, and that’s pretty rare. It also wouldn’t be altogether the worst thing ever to be with him.” 

As Pidge sunk into her seat with a warm look in her eyes, the crowd was cycling up to full energy. Lance had taken out nearly twice as many targets, and he was really playing it up. As the remains of the drones were carried out by more sentry-bots, Lance took the opportunity to shoot a few finger guns into the crowd, along with a wink towards the spectator box where he knew his support partner was watching. 

“I hope you’ve got a good doggy spa lined up mullet-head, because I’m running away with this thing.” Despite Lance’s inflammatory words, Keith kept an even keel, smiling at that particular choice of words. 

“Funny you’d say that, given what the next part of the competition is going to be.”

Shit. Lance had been so swept up in the glory of so thoroughly thrashing Keith in front of an adoring fan base on national television that he had somewhat forgotten that there was more to this competition. Before he could offer a clever retort, Coran spoke up over the loudspeakers in his typical loud and peppy way. Unfortunately, Lance’s heart was pounding in his ears and he couldn’t make out the words, not that he needed to. The first round had been practically handed to him, and the next one wouldn’t be nearly so easy. Slowly but surely, the stage separated to reveal a rising platform holding a 20 foot tall constructed mountain of concrete and railings, atop which rested a single golden flag. The cold sweat that was building under his armpits was going to start forming an unsightly splotch at this rate! Lance had never been the most proficient climber, even with clear handholds and footholds. Keith jabbed Lance in the arm with a friendly elbow as he looked at him with a smirk.

“The first one was free Lance. I’m gonna make you work for this one”. With a nod of his head towards the commentator box, Lance was finally able to focus on the rules of this round. It was pretty simple. Get to the top and recover the flag, and then make it down while still holding the flag. Easy peasy. No problemo. Child’s play. 

‘I’ve got this! Let’s go!’

* * *

Lance most certainly did not have it. In just over a second, Keith had made it to the top of the mountain, and instead of just beating him and getting it over with, Keith decided to play a nice game of keep away with Lance. With his insane speed, Lance had no chance of catching up to him, but with all the cameras, he had to keep trying anyways, no matter how incompetent it made him look. The most humiliating part was, when Keith decided to place the flag back at the top and just peek over the edge at Lance’s feeble attempt at climbing while Coran comentated animatedly.

“And… He’s just sitting there watching… Oh look, our underdog has found another foothold and- oh, he’s decided against it… He’s uh… He’s halfway up? So thats’s good, right?” Coran didn’t even seem to know how to report on what was happening in front of him. The crowd was almost silent at this point to the extent where Pidge could hear someone cough from three rows down. The atmosphere was occasionally punctuated with the occasional laugh at Lance’s expense when Keith would flick a pebble down the side into his face, a fact that caused Lance no shortage of shame. The entire world was getting the opportunity to see him get dunked on hardcore-style, and he couldn’t even swing around his rifle to get a clear shot, since he needed both hands to hold on. After a minute of this, a voice called out from the crowd.

“Just finish it already!” In an instant, the crowd began to chant again and again, calling for the end to the charade, and to Lance’s chagrin, he was internally rooting alongside them. Keith jack-knifed to his feet and made an expression as if to ask the crowd, ‘Really? Are you sure? Okay then.’

The nimble hero shrugged and grabbed the flag from where he’d planted it and then took a running leap from the side, flipping and contorting until he landed gracefully on his feet on the ground below, presenting the flag to the sky with a short bow.

Lance glowered at him from halfway up the mound and muttered an insult under his breath as he slowly shuffled his way down. Coran said something about how it was a valiant effort or something, but Lance was too ashamed to hear it. He just waited until the rules of the next challenge would be explained.

“And with that, the score is now tied one to one! This brings us to the endgame of our little tournament here.” The ground began to rumble as the mountain started sinking back into the ground. “I can assure you all, this next match will be anything but one sided! I guarantee it! Before we get into things though, It’ll do us all some good if I lay down the rules for this round.” 

The mountain finished sinking into the ground as the ground shook more, and a number of pillars and platforms began to rise up in a nearly random pattern. In the center of the arena was a large cylindrical tank filled with water, and suspended in it was another flag, this one a vibrant purple.

“Like before, if either challenger collects the flag and returns to the drop point, then they win! Easy right? Well, to make things more interesting…” A platform sprang up underneath Lance and Keith respectively and began floating to opposite sides of the arena. Each platform was adorned with a small hook for the flag. “This time, in order to win, These young heroes will need to place the flag on the opposing hero's platform! What will be the plan? Offense? Defense? Who knows how this is going to turn out!”

The crowd was roaring in anticipation, the change in scenery getting blood pumping for everyone in attendance, and Lance was no exception. Already his mind was racing with possible strategies and counterstrategies for the ways Keith would undoubtedly try to close the distance. 

“One last thing! There’s another victory condition that I haven’t mentioned yet. If either combatant is ever bound by the wrists with these,” and a holographic image appeared floating in the tank of water of a pair of yellow handcuffs that Lance noticed were also hanging from the hook. “Then they will be considered captured, and will automatically lose! Are you folks ready to see the grudge match of a generation?” Not waiting for the audience to give any kind of reply, Coran shouted, “Ready, Go!”

~~

Pidge was on the edge of her seat from the start as she watched Lance’s eyes dart around the arena, searching for his quarry. From the moment they had begun, Lance hadn’t left his position, save to grab the handcuffs from where they were resting to clip them on his belt. Keith had immediately disappeared from sight with the help of a smoke-bomb, and there was little chance of the experienced hero giving himself away. Luckily, the crowd was on Lance’s side. There was a silence to the crowd as Lance scanned the arena, but then there was a swell of voices and jeers seemingly out of nowhere. Lance quickly darted his eyes towards the flag where it still hung untouched, and in an act of well trained reflexes, he dived off of the platform just in time to see Keith swipe at him with the handcuffs in one hand. 

Both men gave a quiet smirk as Lance nimbly twisted in the air to aim his rifle up as he fell, but he was only able to get one shot off before Keith’s follow up attack left him on his back foot. In hand to hand combat, Lance was hopelessly outmatched, so his only option was to find a way to gain some distance or use his quirk to catch Keith off guard. Pidge knew as much, but it was hard to have faith that he could pull it off while she was watching him get pushed back again and again, resorting to using his rifle to block attacks (a fact which made her grimace watching it. Those were hours of her life she wouldn’t be getting back!).

Suddenly there was a gasp in the crowd, and the cheering increased tenfold as Lance managed to get in a lucky hit, knocking Keith off balance for just a moment. That was all he needed, and he ran, ducking and weaving through the twisting corridors and navigating his way towards the large cylinder in the center. Keith may have been faster, but Lance knew exactly where he was going, and he was fast enough to get there in time. 

Or so he thought. 

Lance had just stepped onto the main platform holding the large tank of water when a flying kick from behind sent him sprawling to the ground. 

“Is this really how you wanna do this Lance? Running away in front of everyone?” Keith had a devilish smirk on his face, obviously trying to goad Lance into doing something rash. Luckily for Lance, rash was just what he needed. He was backed up so close to the enormous tank that he could feel the potential energy thrumming deep in his core and racing down through his fingertips. In an instant, Lance’s frantic panting form steadied as he gave up the act, donning a coy look all of his own.

“Is that really what you think I’m doing Keith? Because I’m afraid that isn’t the case!” Lance was really projecting his voice out, loud enough to be caught on the microphones throughout and broadcast to the stands. “You see, I’ve got you right where I want you!”

The pulling sensation that Lance could feel from deep in his gut started to wrench as he strained his abilities, his hand flush to the tank behind his back. It would take more than just a second to pull off what he was trying to do, and Keith could close the distance in a fraction of that. Lance’s only saving grace was that his only weapon was on the floor between himself and Keith. The other hero didn’t know all the ins and outs of his powers, only that they had to do with the precise motion of water. What Keith didn’t know, was that with enough practice, Lance had discovered that even a few droplets of water in a tank could bore a hole through a solid wall of glass. With the pressure of the water at ground level, Lance would only have one shot to launch his handcuffs at Keith before he realized what he was planning. Lance would have to stall in the meantime, so he casually started twirling his handcuffs in his right hand while his left slowly prodded the wall “I’m disappointed Keith. I thought your battle senses were keener than that!”

Even though Keith knew he was lying about something, he was smart enough to know that Lance was a dangerous combatant on a bad day. He reached for his own handcuffs and got into a ready stance. He drew them slowly but didn’t approach, his ears twitching slowly. “I wonder what’s faster Lance. Your trump card?” He leaned forward into a 3-point stance and gave another sly smile. “Or my legs?” The crowd had once again dropped in volume to the level where you could hear a baby cough, but nobody dared to break the silence. 

Pidge could practically see the tension between the two heroes as her mind worked to try to anticipate what was going to happen next. Based on what she knew about Lance and his quirk, she had a general idea of what he was going to do, but she had no idea if it could match up with Keith’s speed, or if Keith wouldn’t be able to simply react to it ahead of time She didn’t dare breathe, not wanting to risk seeing how this would end up. No matter what happened in the next few seconds, she knew that the next move was going to finish this. 

What ultimately broke the silence was the sound of a single crack in a large wall of glass. What Lance hadn’t realized was that he was drilling the water through a particularly load bearing section of the glass. Both heroes turned to the tank almost in slow motion as the hairline fracture crawled across the surface as the water exerted more pressure on the drill point. 

“I don’t think it’s supposed to do-” The tank exploded and Lance’s world went white. 

* * *

As Lance tried to figure out where he was and what was happening around him, the first thing he noticed was his right hand was raised above his head, almost painfully lifting him off of the ground. What could that possibly mean? Of course! Keith had been bested by Lance’s special technique and was captured! This was Shiro holding him up by his wrist! Victory tasted so sweet! So… painfully sweet… Why did everything hurt? The next thing Lance noticed was that the grip around his wrist was remarkably sturdy and rigid. That must have been the prosthetic! Of course! And that ringing? That was probably just the crowd cheering! Then his senses cleared up and Lance realize that something warm was dripping down his face and tasted like pennies. And there was something large in his face… and the crowd was howling with laughter. 

Hunk could literally not stop laughing as he watched the scene fold before him. The tower had burst, sending both men tumbling into each other and over the edge of the tower’s platform. Both Keith and Lance were dangling from a single pair of flashing handcuffs on the edge of a corner of the maze. Keith was obviously lucid, facepalming with his free hand, but Lance was planted face-first into the cement wall hardly moving. While Hunk would have normally been much more concerned with the state of his friend, he was absolutely dying at the sight of Lance shimmying in what looked like a small victory dance while semi-conscious. When he turned to ask Pidge her opinion on the result of the bout, he noticed that her seat was empty.

Down in the catacombs of the stadium, Pidge was running as fast as she could towards the opening to the field. She knew that Lance was too hard-headed to be seriously hurt by something like that, but she still couldn’t stand the idea of sitting back while someone she cared about… Pidge didn’t have the presence of mind to finish that thought. Lance was going to be fine, and she was going to be there for him. There was nothing to worry about and then she’d get to work upgrading his gear and maybe he’d stop by her lab and she could finally- And she made it to the opening to find Shiro back on the stage addressing the crowd, announcing that the bout had ended in a draw. Though it was potentially a disappointing result, the crowd seemed satisfied enough with how things had ended, with various spectators laughing while others just shook their heads and smiled. 

Pidge hardly cared at that point. A few medical professionals had stepped onto the field as the fight had come to an end to lead the two heroes off the field for an examination, but Pidge couldn’t take her eyes off of Lance’s delirious form. She knew it was stupid to be worried about something so treatable as a blow to the head when he made a living fighting people who could shoot eyebeams and turn concrete into magma, but Pidge wasn’t used to seing him look so… out of it.

Even when she went to visit him in the hospital after a bad fight, he would always be smiling with those bright eyes when she got to him. As they got closer to the tunnel, Pidge couldn’t help but notice how he wasn’t looking anywhere, but he was blindly waving to where he could hear the crowd with blood slowly dripping down his face. His eyes, while still the beautiful blue she had come to love, were unfocused and inattentive.

And then he looked at her. Lance’s eyes moved over hers as he was led inside, and she could hear that the medic was saying something to her, and Keith had made some kind of comment, but all of Pidge’s attention was drawn to the look that Lance was giving her. The raw warmth and affection that she could feel coming from him almost made her stumble, and definitely made her guts do any number of acrobatic stunts while she tried to stay upright.

“Hey Katie~ Are you an angel? Because you’re terrifying to look at~.”

And just like that, he was back to his normal jerky self. Of _ Fucking _ course.

“Nice job getting your ass kicked on national television. I’m sure the reputation of Loverboy Lance is still _ super intact.” _Pidge’s face burned at how easy it had been for him to turn her insides to jelly, and how easily she had let him tear her down. As she stormed off back down the hall, she didn’t have the chance to see Lance’s mortified expression as he realized exactly what he’d just said to the woman he loved.


End file.
